Cavs rally from 22 down to beat Celtics 123-116

BOSTON (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 41 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, to help the Cleveland Cavaliers rally from 22 points down and stun the Boston Celtics 123-116 on Friday night in the final regular-season meeting of the Eastern Conference’s top two teams.

Darius Garland added 20 points and seven assists. Evan Mobley finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds for his 27th double-double to give Cleveland a split in the four-game series with the playoffs just over two months away.

Jayson Tatum finished with 46 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists. Jaylen Brown added 37 points, marking the first time Boston’s top stars both posted 30-point games this season.

The Cavaliers had all of their players available, while the Celtics played without starters Jrue Holiday (finger) and Kristaps Porzingis (illness).

It did nothing to stymie the Celtics early as they sprinted out to a 25-3 lead. But after a cold start the Cavs responded, going on a 41-22 run to get back into the game.

NUGGETS 134, PISTONS 119

DETROIT (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 23 points, 17 rebounds and 15 assists, Jamal Murray scored 31 points, and Denver ended Detroit’s eight-game winning streak with a win.

Michael Porter Jr. scored 28 points and Christian Braun matched Jokic with 23 for Denver, which has won 11 of its last 13 games.

Malik Beasley had 16 points as Detroit’s sixth man, but the Pistons’ starters were outscored 113-54. Cade Cunningham finished with 11 points on 3-for-12 shooting and only had five assists and three rebounds.

The Nuggets led 107-87 going into the fourth quarter and Detroit never made a significant run, although they cut the deficit from 25 to 15 in garbage time.

THUNDER 135, HAWKS 119

ATLANTA (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points and Oklahoma City continued their overwhelming dominance of the Eastern Conference by beating Atlanta.

Luguentz Dort scored 20 points and led Oklahoma City’s long-range assault by shooting 6 of 11 on 3-pointers. Jalen Williams also scored 20 points for the Thunder.

Oklahoma City never trailed and improved to 21-1 against the Eastern Conference. The Thunder (48-11), who have the Western Conference’s top record, are 27-10 against the West.

Atlanta center Onyeka Okongwu had 23 points and 13 rebounds. Caris LeVert scored 23 points.

Trae Young added 19 points with 12 assists for the Hawks. Young shot only 5 of 14 from the field.

TRAIL BLAZERS 121, NETS 102

NEW YORK (AP) — Shaedon Sharpe scored 25 points, Dalano Banton had 14 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, and Portland cruised to a victory over Brooklyn.

Toumani Camara had 19 points, Anfernee Simons chipped in 14, and Donovan Clingan finished with 12 for the Trail Blazers, who extended their winning streak to four games.

Cam Thomas scored 16 points in 21 minutes in his return to the Brooklyn lineup after missing 24 games due to a left hamstring strain.

Nic Claxton and Killian Hayes each had 16 points for the Nets, who have lost their last three games.

Portland led by 21 points in the early minutes of the third quarter before the Nets cut the lead to nine heading into the final period.

Thomas fed Claxton for an alley-oop dunk to make it 96-84 with 10:20 to play in the fourth quarter before the Trail Blazers put the game out of reach with a 13-4 run capped by seven straight points from Banton.

HEAT 125, PACERS 120

MIAMI (AP) — Davion Mitchell’s 3-pointer broke a tie with 43.8 seconds left, Tyler Herro scored 29 points and Miami topped Indiana.

Duncan Robinson scored 20 for Miami, which shot 57% — and has shot 58% in its last two games, tying the seventh-best two-game span in team history. Bam Adebayo scored 18 for Miami.

Pascal Siakam scored 36 for Indiana, while Myles Turner added 22 and Tyrese Haliburton had 19 points and 10 assists. The Pacers made 12 of their first 15 3-pointers, then went 9 for 24 from deep the rest of the way.

KNICKS 114, GRIZZLIES 113

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — OG Anunoby made the go-ahead 3-pointer with 5.3 seconds remaining, finishing with 19 points as New York beat Memphis.

Anunoby’s basket came after the teams exchanged leads in the final two minutes. Memphis had the last possession, but Ja Morant’s layup attempt rolled off the front of the rim, and a tip by Santi Aldama was off the mark.

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 23 points and six assists. Deuce McBride had 17 points off the bench and Mikal Bridges scored 15.

Morant had 25 points and seven assists. Desmond Bane finished with 24 points and matched his season high with 12 rebounds. Jaren Jackson Jr. finished with 18 points.

The Knicks put together a short rally in the latter stages of the first half to pull even at 52-all before Memphis carried a 59-56 into the break. New York benefitted from 10 Memphis turnovers in the half, leading to 15 points.

BULLS 125, RAPTORS 115

CHICAGO (AP) — Coby White scored 24 points, including a clutch four-point play, and Chicago rallied to beat Toronto in overtime.

White completed his biggest play of the night with four seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 110 and set up the extra period, where Lonzo Ball made a pair of 3-pointers during an opening 10-2 run that gave Chicago the lead for good.

Josh Giddey had 19 points and 12 assists for the Bulls, who also got 15 points and 13 rebounds from Zach Collins.

Scottie Barnes scored 24 points for the Raptors, who have lost three straight and nine of 11. Immanuel Quickley scored 23 points before fouling out a minute into overtime.

Toronto led 101-88 with nine minutes left but the Bulls went on a 12-0 run over the next 4:30.

The Raptors led 63-54 at halftime after opening the second quarter on a 10-2 run.

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Cavs rally from 22 down to beat Celtics 123-116

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